Friday, May 1, 2026

Movies I Have Seen - May 2026 (1 movie)

 

5 Movies


The Sting. 1973, Starring 



Hollywood Suite, 3 May 2026. Soundtrack: "



Anachronisms: 

(at around 1h 50 mins) When the briefcase containing $100 bills is opened in extreme closeup, the bills have "modern, small-size" green Federal Reserve seals that are wrong for the 1930s. In that era the green seals would be much larger, and a very light green in color. In fact the bills are Series 1969B, as can be identified by the signatures of the Treasurer (Dorothy Andrews Kabis) and the Secretary of the Treasury (John B. Connally).

(at around 1h 22 mins) At the end of the Snyder-Hooker chase, as Hooker is running down the sidewalk, a red stop sign can be seen in the distance. Red stop signs did not appear until 1954. Prior to that time, stop signs were yellow.

(at around 1h 55 mins) The phone on Polk's desk is appropriate for the time, but it rings like a phone from the 1960s or later.

The white over green bus seen in many shots is a 1959 Isuzu BA 741. This same bus can be seen in Rich Man, Poor Man (1976), Strange Bedfellows (1965), Night Gallery (1969), The Munsters (1964), and many others. It was used on the Universal lot for a long time.

(at around 1h 21 mins) 1950s-era aluminum tube storefront windows are visible when Snyder chases Hooker towards the 'L' station after catching him in the phone booth.

In most every scene in the diner, ketchup bottles can be seen with "lug" type caps that were not invented until the late 1960s.

There is a billboard for Ezra Brooks brand bourbon. Ezra Brooks was not made and sold until 1957.

(at around 48 mins) The deck of cards Henry uses when showing Johnny his shuffling ability are the 1970s-style Bicycle brand cards that would not have been available in the 1930s

(at around 1h 22 mins) The 43rd Street 'L' platform shows "A" and "B" stops, not introduced until WWII, and employs the Helvetica typeface, designed in 1957.

(at around 1h 21 mins) While Snyder is chasing Hooker and he makes the left under the El, there is a modern, red box truck (or emergency vehicle) to the right of the tracks. Also, the front end of a modern vehicle can be seen very briefly on the right side of the tracks, parked just ahead of the red box truck.

Most tall office buildings in night scenes are almost entirely illuminated within by fluorescent lights. This film is set in 1936. Fluorescent tube lights were invented in 1934, but were not widely sold commercially until 1938.

(at around 46 mins) The scene transition shown when the card games on the train take place shows a Pennsylvania Railroad Q1 Class streamlined locomotive. The movie action is supposed to take place in 1936. The Q1 class locomotives weren't introduced until 1943.

(at around 24 mins) There's a double yellow line in the street outside the merry-go-round, just after Hooker arrives in Chicago.


Southland Tales. 2006, Starring 


  • Dwayne Johnson as Boxer Santaros, an amnesiac action star whose life crosses paths with Krysta Now.[13] Santaros is married to Madeline Frost Santaros.[14]
  • Seann William Scott as Officer Roland Taverner / Private Ronald Taverner, identical twin brothers, one who is a kidnapped U.P.U.2 officer in Hermosa Beach, California,[13] the other who is working for the neo-Marxist group who have told him he kidnapped and drugged his brother.[14]
  • Sarah Michelle Gellar as Krysta Now / Krysta Lynn Kapowski, an adult film star who is working on creating a reality show.[13] Gellar met with Kelly and was drawn to the original ideas in his script for Southland Tales.[15]
  • Nora Dunn as Cyndi Pinziki, a porn director and principal member of USIDeath, an organization with plans to destroy US-IDENT.
  • Christopher Lambert as Walter Mung, an arms dealer who sells weapons inside an ice cream truck.
  • John Larroquette as Vaughn Smallhouse, an advisor to Senator Bobby Frost.[14]
  • Bai Ling as Serpentine, the Baron's sultry girlfriend who is seen quite often throughout the film, serving as an ambiguous character that knows more than she lets on.
  • Jon Lovitz as Bart Bookman, a violent police officer in love with Zora Carmichaels.
  • Mandy Moore as Madeline Frost Santaros, Boxer Santaros' wife and daughter of Senator Bobby Frost.
  • Holmes Osborne as Senator Bobby Frost, the father of Madeline Frost Santaros and husband of Nana Mae Frost.
  • Cheri Oteri as Zora Carmichaels, a Neo-Marxist and Bart Bookman's love interest.
  • Amy Poehler as Veronica “Dream” Mung, a Neo-Marxist activist.
  • Lou Taylor Pucci as Martin Kefauver, a young man who is drafted into military service for the Iraq War.
  • Miranda Richardson as Nana Mae Frost, the ambitious antagonist of the film, Boxer's mother-in-law and the head of US-IDENT.[14]
  • Wallace Shawn as Baron von Westphalen, a villain who uses ocean waves to create a source of power. He is the great-grandson of Jenny von Westphalen.[14]
  • Kevin Smith as Simon Theory, a legless Iraq War veteran who works for Baron von Westphalen.[16]
  • Justin Timberlake as Private Pilot Abilene, an Iraq War veteran.[17] He narrates the film and also mimes a musical number.[14]

Wood Harris appears as Neo-Marxist activist Dion Element. Zelda Rubinstein, Beth Grant and Curtis Armstrong portray Dr. Katarina Kuntzler, Dr. Inga Von Westphalen and Dr. Soberin Exx, respectively, all being members of the baron's entourage. Will Sasso plays Fortunio Balducci, while Janeane Garofalo appears as General Teena MacArthur, whose scenes only appear in the Cannes Cut.[18][19] Eli Roth cameos as a man who is shot by US-IDENT while on the toilet.


Hollywood Suite, 4 May 2026. Soundtrack: "



The Housemaid. 2025, Starring 


  • Sydney Sweeney as Wilhelmina "Millie" Calloway, a housemaid with a criminal record
  • Amanda Seyfried as Nina Winchester, a wealthy woman who hires Millie
  • Brandon Sklenar as Andrew Winchester, Nina's husband
  • Michele Morrone as Enzo Accardi, an Italian groundskeeper
  • Elizabeth Perkins as Evelyn Winchester, Andrew's mother
  • Indiana Elle as Cecelia "Cece" Winchester, Nina's daughter
    • Hope Grant as infant CeCe
  • Amanda Joy Erickson as Suzanne, a local housewife
  • Megan Ferguson as Jilianne, a local housewife
  • Ellen Tamaki as Patrice, a local housewife
  • Don DiPetta as Officer Jenkins
  • Lamar B. Slaughter as Officer Stanley
  • Alaina Surgener as Amanda, a local housemaid
  • Alexandra Seal as Jessica Connors, a policewoman
  • Brian D. Cohen as Detective Smythe
  • Ellen Adair as Lisa Killefer, a wealthy woman who interviews Millie in the epilogue


Crave, 5 May 2026. Soundtrack: "



Patton. 1970, Starring 



Hollywood Suite, 6 May 2026, with Dr. Connie Luther. Soundtrack: "



Anachronisms: 

Patton is shown having read a book, "The Tank in Attack", by his adversary, Erwin Rommel. The book "Panzer greift an" was however never finished by Rommel. Most of what was to be in "The Tank in Attack" can be found in the book "The Rommel Papers", which is made from notes and diary entries by Field Marshal Rommel during the Africa campaign.

The tanks used in the major battle scene in North Africa are post-war tanks. On the German side the M48 tank (1953) was used and on the American side the M41 Walker Bulldog (1953), M46 Patton (1949) and (mostly) M47 Patton tanks (1952). The M46, M47 and M48 were all named "Patton" in recognition of his mastery of tank warfare.

Some of the U.S. vehicles in the North Africa and Sicily scenes are shown with the insignia of a white star within a circle. The circle was not added until just before the invasion of mainland Italy in September 1943.

Germany is already divided to East and West Germany in the map of Europe seen in the headquarters, and all other national borders are post WWII.

This movie makes use of the real WWII Jeeps - the MB, GPW; manufactured by Willys & Ford from 1941 - 1945 as well as the first civilian Jeep vehicle, the CJ-2A produced in 1945. The CJ came with a tailgate, side-mounted spare tire, larger headlights, an external fuel cap and many more items that its military predecessors did not include. This "goof" is common in WWII movies.

When General Smith meets with General Patton in London, Smith is wearing what is supposed to be the S.H.A.E.F. (Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces) shoulder patch. He is in fact wearing the US Army Europe patch which came out after WWII and is almost exactly the same in design, except the background of the S.H.A.E.F. patch is black and the U.S. Army Europe patch has a blue background.

A Cadillac M37 self propelled gun is shown in use in North Africa. The M37 did not see service until the Korean War.

One of the planes seen in the film is a Cessna L-19 Bird Dog, which first flew in 1950.

An M44 155mm self propelled howitzer is passed by Patton's staff car in France at one point. The M44, based on the M41 Walker Bulldog, did not enter production until 1953

1948 Packard Custom Eight in front of headquarters.

Numerous M41 Walker Bulldog light tanks are used throughout the film, standing in for both M4 Shermans and M24 Chaffee light tanks (entered service in 1944). The M41 Walker Bulldog, named after General Walton Walker - killed in a Jeep accident in Korea, 1950 - entered production in 1951, and first saw service in 1953, seeing limited service in Korea and fully replacing the M24 Chaffee shortly afterwards.

In the Moroccan Parade scene, the submachine guns carried by the soldiers are MAT-49s, adopted by the French Army in 1950.

General Bradley's command center is towed by a 1964 Mack B-61.

At 2:08:46 in the movie, during the congestion at a crossroads there is a close up of the chaos. A soldier with rolled up sleeves can be seen standing on the hood and fender of a Command Car number 378(?)554 holding what appears to be an M14 Rifle. This weapon is a modified M1 Garand, and is visibly similar to the M1 Carbine used in WWII except that it is bulkier, the sling is attached to the bottom of the butt with a swivel, and the magazine is larger than that of the M1 Carbine due to the longer ammunition it uses. The M14 came into use in the 1957, and not during WWII.

When Bradley and staff review the wreckage of the Battle of Kasserine Pass at the start of the film, they are shown wearing the "AF" shoulder patch of Allied Forces Headquarters. This patch was not issued until mid-1943. The battle took place in February 1943.

During the tank battle with Rommel, two of the long distance shots of the German tanks (taken from Patton's perspective) show a tall broadcast tower in the distance.

Patton and members of his staff are shown wearing Bronze Star Medals at the award ceremony in Morocco in 1943. While the Bronze Star was retroactively awarded back to 1941, it was only first authorized in 1944.

The opening speech is supposed to be George S. Patton's famous speech(es) to the 3rd Army prior to D-Day (6/6/44); he is wearing 4 stars, but was not promoted to a 4 star general until April 14, 1945.

When the British drive through Algiers, a VW Type 2 van can be seen in the background. The Type 2 started production in 1950. Later, when Patton speeches in Knutsford, a red 1960's truck (lorry) drives by in the background.

When the locals celebrate the US Army taking Palermo many of the crowd extras are wearing modern (1960s) clothes and hairstyles.


Sunshine. 2007 (British), Starring 


  • Cillian Murphy as Robert Capa, the physicist who operates the massive stellar-bomb device. Murphy described the character of Capa as a silent outsider, which was due to the fact that only Capa understood the operation and true scale of the bomb.[4] Murphy worked with physicist Brian Cox,[5] who praised Murphy's performance as "brilliant" and a "great portrayal as a physicist",[6] to learn about advanced physics, touring the CERN facility and learning to copy physicists' mannerisms.[7] The actor also studied the thriller The Wages of Fear (1953) with Boyle to gain an understanding of the type of suspense that Boyle wanted to create in the film.[8] Murphy said that his involvement in the film caused him to change his views on religion from agnosticism to atheism.[7][9]
  • Chris Evans as James Mace, the engineer. Evans described his character Mace as one with a military family and background. Mace has a dry and morally uncomplicated personality. Said Evans, "[He] has a very level head which enables him to operate fairly coherently under pressure-filled situations."[10]
  • Rose Byrne as Cassie, the space vessel's pilot. Byrne was chosen by the director for her role in Troy (2004).[11] Byrne described Cassie as the most emotional member of the crew, "wearing her heart on her sleeve". Byrne considered Cassie's role among the crew was to possess an even temperament, which helps her last the journey.[10]
  • Michelle Yeoh as Corazon, the biologist who takes care of the ship's "oxygen garden". Boyle cast Yeoh based on her performance in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997),[10] and Memoirs of a Geisha (2005).[12] Yeoh described her character as more spiritual, explaining Corazon's background as an "Asian influence or that she's always constantly surrounded by organic things – she's very grounded and more down-to-earth."[13]
  • Cliff Curtis as Searle, the ship's doctor and psychological officer. He is obsessed with the Sun and how it looks when staring at it without any type of protection. The role of Searle was originally written to be a "slightly stiff" British character.[10] Curtis was drawn to the role based on the script and also expressed interest in working with the director.[14] Boyle was familiar with Curtis from Training Day (2001) and Whale Rider (2002),[15] and Curtis's audition appealed to Boyle strongly enough to cast the actor as Searle.[10] Curtis initially foresaw an esoteric approach for his character, but he later pursued a military and scientific approach based on the seriousness of the mission. The actor also compared Searle to the character of Pinbacker, noting their similarities and differences: "[Searle] would sacrifice those beliefs and views, his life, for the greater good, whereas Pinbacker, who's come to a place he believes is right, would sacrifice the world for his beliefs. They're two sides of the same coin."[14]
  • Troy Garity as Harvey, the communications officer and second-in-command. Garity's previous work was unknown to Boyle, but the director was impressed enough with the actor upon meeting him that he cast Garity. Garity described the character of Harvey as the only crew member who misses his family back home on Earth and attempts to hide the fact.[10]
  • Hiroyuki Sanada as Kaneda, the ship's captain. The script originally had an American captain, but Boyle changed the nationality to Japanese after studying the opinions of scientists and space experts.[16] Boyle saw Sanada in The Twilight Samurai (2002), and director Wong Kar-wai recommended the actor to Boyle when the latter sought someone to cast as the Asian captain of the ship.[17] Sanada's character was originally called Kanada, but he asked Boyle to change the name to Kaneda, a more natural Japanese name. The character was Sanada's second English-language role in cinema, and Sanada learned different forms of English, depending on the circumstances. Sanada's base English language had a British dialect, and when the actor recited official statements as Kaneda, the dialect was official English. In communicating with other characters as Kaneda, Sanada spoke with an American English accent to reflect the fictional situation of the character training with the rest at NASA.[16]
  • Benedict Wong as Trey, the navigator. Boyle saw Wong in Dirty Pretty Things (2002). Wong's character, Trey, was a child prodigy who created a computer virus that brought down one-sixth of the world's computers. As a result, Trey is recruited into the space program so his genius could be applied more beneficially.[10]
  • Chipo Chung as the voice of "Icarus", the on-board computer of the spacecraft Icarus II possesses a "natural-language" communication interface, allowing the crew to ask questions, give orders, and receive status updates and warnings verbally, as if they were talking to a human. Indeed, the ship itself is a major character in the movie. This was Chung's first named film role.[18]
  • Mark Strong as Pinbacker, the murderous captain of Icarus I, the first ship that was sent to reignite the Sun. Pinbacker was inspired by the character of Sergeant Pinback from Dark Star.[19] The character's disfiguring burns were influenced by the injuries suffered by F1 driver Niki Lauda.[20] Boyle described the character of Pinbacker as a representation of fundamentalism.[21] The director also described the potentially unrealistic presence of Pinbacker as an example of something that breaks the pattern of realism, similar to his scene in Trainspotting (1996) in which Ewan McGregor's character dives into a toilet.[22]
  • Paloma Baeza as Capa's sister.


Hollywood Suite, 7 May 2026. Soundtrack: "















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